Workers Solidarity Movement

Since the first Dublin Anarchist Bookfair 5 years ago, this event has grown to be one of the biggest left wing political events in Dublin every year,” said Ciaran Murphy, a member of Workers Solidarity Movement and one of the Bookfair organisers.  “This year’s event promises to be an exciting and interesting occasion, bringing together a wide variety of anarchists, activists and just ordinary people who are looking for new ideas.

Around 200 people took part on the anti-capitalist bloc which marched to the Dail last night, meeting up with the 400 or so people who had already gathered for the Right to Work demonstration.  Unlike the previous week there was no attempt by the Gardai to prevent us marching although once more a large force was deployed both at our gathering point at the Wolfe Tone Statue and at Anglo Irish Bank where Gregor Kerr of the WSM and Brian Leeson of éirígí addressed the crowd.

The first copies were distibuted as Gardai attacked the Anglo Irish bank occupation and then attempted to stop the anti-capitalist bloc march but this is the formal launch of the new WSM magazine Irish Anarchist Review much of the content of which looks at the fight against the capitalist crisis in the workplace. Authors & editors will introduce the articles, there will be some formal discussion and lots of hanging out and informal discussion. BYOB event, Friday night - 20:00 - Seomra Spraoi

Anarchist organisation, Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM), has called on “workers, the unemployed, trade union branches, community organisations and all who are angry with the government’s economic slash and burn policies to come together and build a united campaign against the cuts.”

Last Tuesday the Gardaí attempted to stop the Anti-Capitalist Bloc marching to join up with the Right to Work Campaign at the Dail protest. Despite riding horses into the march they failed to either deny us our freedom to protest or to provoke a response as we pushed through and around them. Join us this week, same time and same place as we once more assert our freedom to protest.

Members of Anarchist organisation, Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM) will assemble at the Wolfe Tone Statue, St. Stephen’s Green on Tuesday evening at 7p.m. as part of an Anti-Capitalist Bloc jointly organised with left republican organisation Eirigi.

On May 21 2010 campaigners with Shell to Sea entered the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources drapped in chains and locked together to mark the 100th day of the imprisonment of Erris fisherman Pat O'Donnell.  This action is part of a national day of protest which includes a protest outside the HQ of Shell on Leeson street, only 50m from the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. A public protest starts at 5pm tonight at Shell HQ just across the road from the department.

Dublin Shell to Sea is protesting today at Shell's HQ on Leeson street to mark the 100th day that fisherman Pat O'Donnell has spent in prison for resisting Shell's experimental gas pipeline. Pat was joined in Castlerea jail 31 days ago by another Shell to Sea campaigner Niall Harnett.

On 21st May next Erris fisherman and Shell to Sea campaigner Pat O’Donnell will be spending his 100th day in prison. Pat’s alleged ‘crime’ was to stand up for the right of his community to live in peace and safety. For this he was sentenced to seven months in prison.

In the context of previously reported Gardai violence against bank bail out protests the WSM decided to mobilise for the Right to Work protest on May 18th and published a call for an "anti-capitalist block" on the demonstration, to assemble on Stephen's Green, a few hundred metres away from the Dail and a half an hour earlier than the scheduled time for the RTW march.  This was done for a couple of reasons - firstly because the announced starting point for the RTW march was the Dail, which was also the march's destination. Thus it seemed that a static rally with speeches from notables was to be the order of the day and these are normally felt to be fairly grim and turgid affairs to anyone who has attended a few.  Secondly because the WSM wanted to differentiate itself from the SWP-controlled RTW event and create an alternative pole of attraction for radicals.